Ancient city of Mauretania Tingitana, Lixus was settled by the Phoenicians in the 7th century BC and was later annexed by Carthage. Lixus was part of a chain of Phoenician/Carthaginian settlements along the Atlantic coast of what is now present day Morocco; other major settlements further to the south are Chellah and Mogador. When Carthage fell to Ancient Rome, Lixus, Chellah and Mogador became outposts The ancient sources agree to make of Lixus a counter Phoenician, which is confirmed by the archaeological discovery of material dating from 8th century BC. It gradually grew in importance, later coming under Carthaginian domination. After the destruction of Carthage, Lixus fell to Roman control and was made an imperial colony, reaching its zenith during the reign of the emperor Claudius I (AD 41-54).Some ancient Greek writers located at Lixus the mythological garden of the Hesperides, the keepers of the golden apples. The name of the city which was often mentioned by writers from Hanno the Navigator to the Geographer of Ravenna and confirmed by the legend on its coins and by an inscription. The ancients believed this to be the site of the Garden of the Hesperides and of a sanctuary of Hercules, where Hercules gathered gold apples, more ancient than the one at Cadiz, Spain. However, there are no grounds for the claim that Lixus was founded at the end of the second millennium BC. This site was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List on July 1st, 1995 in the Cultural category Ancient city of Mauretania Tingitana, Lixus was settled by the Phoenicians in the 7th century BC and was later annexed by Carthage. Lixus was part of a chain of Phoenician/Carthaginian settlements along the Atlantic coast of what is now present day Morocco; other major settlements further to the south are Chellah and Mogador. When Carthage fell to Ancient Rome, Lixus, Chellah and Mogador became outposts The ancient sources agree to make of Lixus a counter Phoenician, which is confirmed by the archaeological discovery of material dating from 8th century BC. It gradually grew in importance, later coming under Carthaginian domination. After the destruction of Carthage, Lixus fell to Roman control and was made an imperial colony, reaching its zenith during the reign of the emperor Claudius I (AD 41-54).Some ancient Greek writers located at Lixus the mythological garden of the Hesperides, the keepers of the golden apples. The name of the city which was often mentioned by writers from Hanno the Navigator to the Geographer of Ravenna and confirmed by the legend on its coins and by an inscription. The ancients believed this to be the site of the Garden of the Hesperides and of a sanctuary of Hercules, where Hercules gathered gold apples, more ancient than the one at Cadiz, Spain. However, there are no grounds for the claim that Lixus was founded at the end of the second millennium BC. This site was added to the UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List on July 1st, 1995 in the Cultural category Currently a building is underway on the site, it’s what the ministry of culture of Morocco claims that it is going to be a museum, apparently the digging caused lots of damage to the ruins, there are pictures and videos of the damage caused in our page on facebook: “ SOS Lixus”. we urge you to add your name to this petition, and alert your freinds to do liklewise.